


sea of love

by bootyshortskeef



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: F/F, Femslash, Genderswap, Getting Together
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-02
Updated: 2020-10-02
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:15:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,905
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26780503
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bootyshortskeef/pseuds/bootyshortskeef
Summary: Keith gets a visitor in the middle of the night.
Relationships: Keith/Shiro (Voltron)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 8
Collections: Femsheith Exchange 2020





	sea of love

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ThatScottishShipper](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatScottishShipper/gifts).



> This is my gift fic for the Femsheith Exchange. First, sorry this is late. D: You had lots of great stuff in your likes, so I tried to go off of that to write something I hope you will like. Also, there's a second, nsfw chapter in the works. (Rating and tags will change later) I just wanted to get the first part posted for you as soon as possible. 
> 
> The fic title is from The National's "Sea of Love" and the chapter title is from Rostam's "Hold You". 
> 
> Thanks to dev for looking over this. <3

Keith bolts awake, terrified because the castleship alarm is going off. She's disoriented and fighting off the dregs of a nightmare when she realizes she's not on the castleship, and there is no alarm. She's on Atlas, and the sound she hears is just her door chime. She sighs in relief before the anxiety over a late night caller hits. Why would somebody be visiting at this hour? She’s imagining all kinds of disastrous scenarios when she opens the door to find Shiro. She’s beautiful even in the harsh lights of the Atlas--but she looks exhausted.

“Shiro? Is everything okay?”

Shiro runs a hand through her hair. "Uh, yeah. Sorry, I know it's late. I just couldn't sleep and thought--"

“It’s fine, Shiro. Come in.”

Keith leads her to the couch and then settles in beside her. She looks at Shiro and finds that she looks unsettled. “Did you have a nightmare?”

Shiro snorts. “I might’ve if I could actually get to sleep.”

Keith is familiar with the act of chasing sleep only to find herself waking from a nightmare once she’s gotten there. It’s getting better now that she’s in therapy, but sleep still often eludes her. “What’s on your mind?”

“What isn’t?”

“Shiro…”

“Sorry. I’ve just been thinking it’s not over. The war.” It’s not, really. There are still Galra rebel factions everywhere and loyalist colonies that are operating even though both Zarkon and Haggar were taken down. And even on planets where the Galra have left, there are civil wars erupting. True peace will not be achieved anytime soon. Keith knows this. But the constant and immediate danger they faced on the castleship is gone. She knows it’s that immediate danger that Shiro still worries about in spite of their relative safety. Keith worries about it too. The sensation that disaster will strike at any moment still lingers, and the need to stay alert keeps any of the paladins from sleeping well at night--among other reasons. 

“I know. It’s the same for me, Shiro. When I heard my door chime I thought it was the castleship alarm.”

“Sorry about that.”

“It’s fine. I’m glad you came here.” The thought of Shiro pacing the halls of the Atlas all night instead of reaching out doesn’t sit right with Keith--even though Keith often does this herself. She’s even run into Shiro some nights. Those are the nights they end up on the observation deck talking for hours, or sparring until four in the morning.

“Me too. Thanks, Keith.” She smiles and grasps Keith’s hand with her Altean one. It engulfs her hand entirely. Keith kind of loves it. She thinks a lot about Shiro and her big hands--thoughts that are not entirely innocent. “What do you do when you can’t sleep?”

“Sometimes I go to the training deck to tire myself out. And I know you’ve seen me wandering the halls at night. I tried taking sleeping pills once, but I didn’t like how they made me feel.” She had woken up feeling as if she was under water, her body heavy and her head foggy. She knew she’d be useless in an emergency, and that feeling sent her spiralling into a panic attack. 

“I know what you mean." Shiro sighs. "I never wanted it to be this way. For any of us.”

“You say that like it’s your fault.”

“Isn’t it?”

Keith feels her heart break a little. Has Shiro been carrying this around all this time? “What are you talking about? What, you think if you hadn’t gone to Kerberos none of this would’ve happened?”

Shiro looks defeated. “Maybe. Maybe if I hadn’t been selfish--”

“Stop that. You know the war would’ve come here eventually, and it would’ve been a lot worse since Zarkon would’ve had the blue lion. It’s not fair for you to put that all on yourself. It’s not fair to any of us. We all got thrown into the war by chance, but we all made choices too. We chose to be there the night you came back, we chose to get in the blue lion. We chose to fight together as Voltron.” Keith’s throat feels tight and her eyes burn and she’s gripping Shiro’s shoulders tightly. “Besides, you might not even be here if none of this had happened. And maybe it’s selfish of me, but I’d do it all again just to have you here. I’d do anything.”

“Keith--”

“I’m sorry. I don’t mean that I’m glad for everything you went through. I’m just glad you’re here now.”

“Keith, look at me.”

Keith wipes her eyes with the back of her hand and takes a shaky breath and looks at Shiro. She’s not crying, but it looks as if she might. 

“Keith. You’re right. It’s not fair for me to bear responsibility for all of the sacrifices everyone else made. Sometimes I just get stuck in this cycle of guilt, and it’s hard to pull myself out. I’m sorry.” She swipes her thumb across Keith’s wet cheek, and Keith grabs her hand and holds it to her chest.

“I’m sorry too, Shiro. You’ve gone through so much--I would never want that to happen to you again.”

“It’s alright, Keith. I know what you meant. I’m glad I’m here with you too. I’m happy we get more time to spend together.” Shiro presses a kiss to Keith’s forehead, and the warmth of it spreads down to her toes. “You know I love you, Keith.” She murmurs it so softly against Keith’s hair that she wonders if she’s imagined it. “Did you know--” Shiro hesitates.

“What is it?”

“It’s nothing.”

She wants to know. She needs to know what Shiro means by this. “You know you can tell me anything.”

“It’s just--my clone. She loved you too, you know. When I woke up, I realized what she had figured out a long time ago. I didn’t say anything then, because I was so mixed up. I couldn’t separate my feelings from her’s. After a while, I realized our feelings were one and the same. But I just thought you should know that she loved you. You deserve to be loved, Keith.”

Hope rises in her belly. She’s always known Shiro loves her, but she’s never thought it was in the same way that she loves Shiro. Maybe she’s been wrong this whole time. “Shiro--you love me?”

“Of course I do. I’m sorry I didn’t say it back sooner. Like I said, I was kind of a mess. I still am in a lot of ways, so, you’re stuck with that. But I’ve sorted out a lot of my feelings.”

“You love me.” Keith breaks out into a smile and starts tearing up again, unable to help the surge of emotions from overwhelming her. Shiro loves her. And strangely, when she thinks about it, it isn’t really that surprising. Maybe she’s known for a while now. Maybe she’s just been too afraid to accept it, or maybe she’s just been waiting for Shiro to be ready. “I love you too.”

“I know. I remember. But it isn’t just that--you’re always showing me that you do.”

“I am?”

“Yeah. Like today, you brought me Vraxian candies.”

“Well, I know you love them.”

“You traded your Tyrellian tea for them.”

Keith does love her tea, but she definitely loves Shiro more. It was an easy sacrifice to make. “You were so stressed out. I thought they might help.” 

“They did. You’re always doing things like that.”

It’s true, although Keith hadn’t really thought much about it before. Keith often brings lunch for Shiro because she gets so busy she forgets to eat, or rescues her from demanding ambassadors, or offers to help her work on her hoverbike. That last one might be a bit selfish, though--mostly, she just wants to spend time with Shiro. In any case, Keith does these things for everyone she cares about. She’s never been very good with words, so little gestures are how she shows her love. She can admit that she’s more attentive when it comes to Shiro, though. “I just--I want to.”

“I know. Thank you, Keith.”

“You don’t have to thank me for that. It’s easy to love you.” She states it plainly, like it’s common knowledge. It should be, Keith thinks. 

“Oh,” Shiro says softly and then leans forward and nuzzles against Keith’s nose. It sends electricity through Keith--it would be so easy to just kiss her. She presses her lips against Shiro’s cheek instead. Her heart feels like it’s going to burst out of her chest. She’s so nervous, not just because she’s never kissed anyone, but because it’s Shiro. Then again, she thinks, maybe that’s a good reason not to be nervous--it’s Shiro. She wouldn’t care if she’s clumsy or that she’s inexperienced. 

She kisses Shiro’s cheek again, just to ground herself. Then, finally, she presses her mouth to Shiro’s. It doesn’t feel so Earth-shattering as she thought it would. It’s actually kind of awkward. She’s not sure what to do with her mouth, not even sure what to do with her hands. But then Shiro makes a soft noise and kisses her back, and it’s wonderful. Shiro places her hands on Keith’s cheeks and tilts her head, kisses her more firmly. The press of Shiro’s mouth against her own makes her blood sing. She teases her tongue against Keith’s lips, and she opens for Shiro, letting Shiro slide her tongue into her mouth. It’s still a little awkward, but it’s nice, and she’s a fast learner. It's not long before the kiss turns heated and desperate. Keith reaches for Shiro and places her hand on the back of Shiro’s neck, sliding her nails against the shaven hair. Shiro makes a sound, a breath of a moan, and Keith wants to hear it again. She can’t wait to find out what other kinds of sounds Shiro makes, and what it takes to pull them out of her.

When they pull back for a breath, Shiro’s lips are swollen and her cheeks flushed. Her hair is mussed up from Keith’s hands, and she looks gorgeous. “Wow. You look--really good.” She feels her own cheeks redden over her clumsy words. 

“I should be saying that to you.” The way Shiro looks at her makes Keith burn--she looks like she wants to ravish her. The thought of it is so overwhelming that all she can do is kiss Shiro again. This time, their kiss is slow and sweet, and Keith wants to melt into it. When Shiro pulls away, Keith goes chasing after her mouth, not wanting it to end. But Shiro just kisses her chastely and lets out a breathy laugh. 

Keith can tell she’s pouting, just a little. She wants more, wants everything with Shiro. But she suddenly realizes how tired she is and decides she’ll try for patience. She nuzzles into Shiro’s neck, kissing her there without intent. Shiro presses her Altean hand against the small of Keith’s back and pulls her in closer. She kisses the top of her head, and Keith feels so warm and full of love. 

When she wakes in the morning, she’s stiff and sore from sleeping in an odd position, and she has a weird crease on her face from Shiro’s shoulder port, but she decides it was worth it. 

  
  
  



End file.
